Chapter 48: The Wives Story 07 – And Now What

May – June – Year 4

“Code Blue!”

I heard the words and looked to see that Blossom was a sickly pale blue color. Several people ran into the room and pushed me out of the way.

“We need to clear you out of here. NOW!” Dr. Grand ordered.

Erin and Lynn grabbed the girls who were now scared out of their minds. We backed out the door and we went to the nurse’s station. We were all holding onto each other as Blossom was rolled out of her delivery room and down the hall. We were standing in shock when a nurse came up to us.

“Mr. O’Dell? Please come with me.”

“What about my family?”

“Right now, I can only bring you. Please.”

She calmly pleaded.

“Lynn, Erin, Go to the nursery and take care of things with Gwendolyn and William.”

I kissed each of them and followed the nurse down the same hall that Blossom had been rolled. The nurse led me to the waiting room of the surgical unit and I took my seat and waited. I thought about my son and my new daughter and my wife and the nightmare scenarios ran through my head. I rejected the worst case. No. Blossom would not be gone. She and I had a son to raise.

After what seemed like hours the door of the operating room opened, and two men came out. One I didn’t know, the other, I knew very well. Dr. Grand walked over to me and the other doctor returned through the doors they had come out of.

“I’m so sorry Paul. We could not stop the bleeding. We lost her.”

Dr. Grand looked up at me.

“What happened?”

“It was an internal hemorrhage.”

“Doctor, you know me now. You have dealt with me and my wives. You know how much we love each other. How did this happen? Could it have been avoided?”

“Paul, I just don’t know!”

“Doc, if you tell me that this was unavoidable, and you did everything you could think of to save my wife, then we shake and cry on each other’s shoulders and I go take care of my surviving wife’s and Blossom’s babies. We come back in a few weeks and you deliver their babies and life goes on.”

I took a deep breath.

“But if this was because you did something careless or stupid, I will destroy you and I do not mean in a court of law.”

He looked in my eyes and saw my deadly intent. I meant it. I would see to it that he was praying to die.

“Paul, should I have known, yes, maybe. I mean I know that a car could hit me walking across the street. There were no signs that anything was wrong. Her BP was right, her HR was right. Everything was right! Right up until her heart stopped. They will do an autopsy to find the actual cause, but nothing I was looking at would have clued me in. I’m sorry Paul.”

At that he broke into tears. He was crushed.

I knew from talks with him and others that doctors had training to deal with death. To see this man, who had delivered Erin’s and Lynn’s and Blossom’s babies, reduced to tears told me that he had just experienced something beyond him, beyond his knowledge and his belief in himself.

I sat and put my arm around him as this grown man leaned on me and cried his heart out. I have always believed that love expands to fill the needs and now was a need. My grief for Blossom and my wives was put off for the moment. I was going to need this man to be on his game for my next brood to be delivered.

“Doc, I believe you. I will tell my wives.”

“No, Paul. It is my job to tell the next of kin. I need to do this.”

We stood and walked out of the ER and to the maternity ward where Erin and Lynn were looking at the babies in the nursery.

“Paul! What is going on?”

Lynn looked at me and saw my pain.

“Lynn, Erin, I am sorry.” Doctor Grand was still teary eyed. “Blossom did not make it. It looks like she had an internal hemorrhage and before we caught it her heart stopped. We lost her. I’m sorry.”

He began to openly sob again.

“Lost her?”

Erin gasped, her new love was dead, her new wife, the new love she had taken with both hands and accepted. Lynn embraced her wife and began to sob as well. I wanted to join them, but they needed strength now. I held them as they broke down as the realization that they had lost their wife sank in. Doctor Grand stood and walked back towards the ER, I looked at him and decided to deal with him later.

Then all hell broke loose again.

“Code Blue!” The sound came over the PA system.

People began to run into the surgery again and a few seconds later, Doctor Grand came running out.

“Paul! She is back! The ER doctor is with her and working on her, but her heart started again. I don’t know how long this is going to take or anything. Go to the nursery and I will find you.”

He ran back into surgery. We stood in shock and before I knew what was happening I had dropped to my knees and embraced my daughters. I looked up at their mom’s and quietly spoke.

“Guys, I want to pray.”

Lynn dropped to her knees next to me and was immediately joined by our wife. The girls did what the grownups were doing.

“Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our sins and help us forgive those who sin against us. Save us from the time of trial and deliver us from evil. For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours now and forever. Please save our wife and mother Blossom O’Dell as she fights for her life and return her to us whole to be loved as we love you. Amen.”

Lynn and Erin said “Amen” and the girls said something close to it. Taylor looked at us and spoke softly.

“I wish I could sleep so I could talk to the sisters. They could help.”

“Well Taylor, we will all hope that things work out. Right now, let’s go to see your new sister and brother.”

“He is a boy. He has a penis.” Margaret spoke.

“Yes baby. He is a boy and has a penis, like your Daddy.” Erin grinned.

“But lots smaller.”

Her mother ruffed up the hair on her little blonde head. I got off of my knees and stood proud and unafraid.

“Come on my loves. Let’s go and take care of Gwendolyn and William. They need to be fed and held and loved, and I can only do the last two.”

They looked up at me and found the strength to stand, smile and nod in agreement. We walked to the nurses station and found Georgia. She looked at us with tears in her eyes.

“I am so sorry about Blossom. I can’t believe that she is gone.”

We told her what had just happened and then she really began to cry and ran back into the nursery. We followed as far as we could and asked if my wives could please nurse their new children. Lynn and Erin were led into a room to the side of the nursery. Erin reached into her shoulder bag and pulled out her nursing sling. Lynn did the same.

In a few moments Erin had Penelope in the sling and latched on to her right breast. Lynn had Paula in her sling and Paula latched on to her left breast. Georgia still had tears in her eyes as she brought out Gwendolyn and William. Erin looked at Lynn.

“Lover, you take William.”

Lynn smiled and tearing up, took William to her open breast.

“Thank you, Sweetie.”

Erin smiled and kissed her wife as she took Gwendolyn to her magical left nipple. The babies began to nurse and they both assumed the normal nursing baby position and curled their little hands and toes and brought their knees up in a little ball in the comfy slings.

I saw Dr. Grand out of the corner of my eye and left my family to go out in the hall and talk to him. Just then a little more hell broke loose as Bill and Gwen came rushing into the area.

“Where are Blossom and the babies?”

I pointed to the nursery door. The grandparents entered. Lynn looked at them and took a deep breath, slowly letting it out.

“Hi mom and dad. This is William Blossom O’Dell. And that darling bundle with Erin is Gwendolyn Blossom O’Dell.”

Bill and Gwen broke out in huge smiled and began to touch the baby’s heads and hands and feet.

“Where is Blossom?” Gwen asked.

“Mom, there was a problem. Blossom had some internal bleeding and she is in emergency surgery right now. We are waiting for the doctor to come out and tell us what is going on. The girls have been here the whole time and have been great. Would you please talk to them and calm them down?”

“Calm THEM down? Who is going to calm me down? I want to know what is going on with my daughter.”

Bill was getting angry when the nursery door opened and Dr. Grand and I came in. The wives looked at me and I began to cry.

“Paul? Dr. Grand? What is going on?” Erin asked, almost franticly.